Paperchain Founders Note 2018.

From our initial focus on metadata and royalty payments, we saw a larger need across all media verticals to address systemic problems related to payment expediency and cost of capital.

Over the past two years, blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies moved to the forefront of technology and finance media. With that exposure came the speculators and opportunists. This resulted in an unsustainable period of high-growth and over-valuation, which is now being corrected.

True progress became lost in that hype cycle.

We had numerous offers to do our own Initial Coin Offering (ICO), with “investors” willing to underwrite the cost in exchange for an upside in the raise. It was never a comfortable fit for us. We questioned the need for another economy token and the value raising this way would actually deliver to our potential clients and to the business.

We forfeited the opportunity to raise in that bull market. We wanted to focus on getting buy-in.

This year has been defined by great struggle, but we made progress.

While we would prefer to be validating with the market in much quicker cycles, we are making progress and getting buy-in from the right people.

Accomplishments

We have signed agreements with 3 key businesses across the music and film industries.

We are beginning data integration projects to validate our financing model to start offering our service to their clients.

We have a buy-side partner in place ready to begin financing orders.

Secured part of our pre-seed investment and extended our runway.

Secured a Head of Finance/Portfolio Management role.

Are in discussion with a prominent decentralized finance company to create an investment pool for cryptocurrency investors.

Launched Token Engineering NYC, a monthly meetup to present and workshop token collaborate on approaches to tokenomics and infrastructure-level development. We have had 4 wonderful meetups so far.

Launched the Protocol Canvas. Based on the Lean Canvas, a standardized framework for evaluating token protocols.

One of the co-founders, Dave Tomaselli, built a restaurant in Staten Island with his brother-in-law, Ted. If you want to check out a great new restaurant in downtown Staten Island, check out The Richmond. Ping us a note if you plan to come along and we’d be happy to meet you there.

What’s next

We ended the year with some fantastic news that we hope to share by the end of January (related to securing part of our pre-seed investment).

We aim to have our first transactions on the market happening within the next 6-8 weeks.

An updated website will be launched in January with clearer wording and a straight forward sign up process for media companies.

We aim to become more transparent as a business. We are all huge fans of Buffer and the transparency Joel brings to running a startup. While making financials and other sensitive material hasn’t been decided yet, we want to document and make publish more of our rationale and decision-making and be more forthright about the challenges we go through.

Holiday recommendations

What’s interesting or valuable about this media list is what it reveals about us as founders, and the subjects that interest and inspire us outside of Paperchain’s direct product-market offering.

Yes, we believe we have a vision for an investment market that can change how media finance works. We also believe we have a larger role to play in who gets to participate in financial markets.

For us, blockchain technology has been about democratization.

As you go through the listening/watching/reading list below, you can start to see the works that influence this thinking.